The University of Southampton
University of Southampton Institutional Repository

Why and how narrative matters in deliberative systems

Why and how narrative matters in deliberative systems
Why and how narrative matters in deliberative systems
Narrative has become a fashionable concept in the everyday practice and analysis of democratic politics. Politicians, bureaucrats, lobbyists, activists and commentators all talk about the importance of constructing and controlling narratives in democratic debate. Yet astonishingly, the pre-eminent way of thinking about public debate in democratic theory – deliberative democracy – has almost nothing to say about narrative. Drawing on the substantial bodies of literature on narrative in general, and on its relationship to public debate in particular, this article argues that narrative is in fact a crucial aspect of democratic deliberation. In light of the ‘systemic turn’ in deliberative theory, which sees deliberation as occurring across a range of differentiated but interconnected spaces, it suggests that narrative is a crucial device by which people talk and think about complex and contested issues. It argues that deliberative democrats must come to terms with narrative because its pervasive influence can affect deliberative systems in important ways. The article outlines these potential impacts – both those that reinforce deliberative ideals and those that conflict with them. It concludes by looking at the broader implications for the practice, theory and study of deliberative democracy.
0032-3217
620-636
Boswell, John
34bad0df-3d4d-40ce-948f-65871e3d783c
Boswell, John
34bad0df-3d4d-40ce-948f-65871e3d783c

Boswell, John (2013) Why and how narrative matters in deliberative systems. Political Studies, 61 (3), 620-636. (doi:10.1111/j.1467-9248.2012.00987.x).

Record type: Article

Abstract

Narrative has become a fashionable concept in the everyday practice and analysis of democratic politics. Politicians, bureaucrats, lobbyists, activists and commentators all talk about the importance of constructing and controlling narratives in democratic debate. Yet astonishingly, the pre-eminent way of thinking about public debate in democratic theory – deliberative democracy – has almost nothing to say about narrative. Drawing on the substantial bodies of literature on narrative in general, and on its relationship to public debate in particular, this article argues that narrative is in fact a crucial aspect of democratic deliberation. In light of the ‘systemic turn’ in deliberative theory, which sees deliberation as occurring across a range of differentiated but interconnected spaces, it suggests that narrative is a crucial device by which people talk and think about complex and contested issues. It argues that deliberative democrats must come to terms with narrative because its pervasive influence can affect deliberative systems in important ways. The article outlines these potential impacts – both those that reinforce deliberative ideals and those that conflict with them. It concludes by looking at the broader implications for the practice, theory and study of deliberative democracy.

This record has no associated files available for download.

More information

Published date: 8 October 2013
Organisations: Politics & International Relations

Identifiers

Local EPrints ID: 353489
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/353489
ISSN: 0032-3217
PURE UUID: 9800f68a-3b25-4ca0-b6bf-36fcc8fc6655
ORCID for John Boswell: ORCID iD orcid.org/0000-0002-3018-8791

Catalogue record

Date deposited: 10 Jun 2013 10:51
Last modified: 15 Mar 2024 03:48

Export record

Altmetrics

Download statistics

Downloads from ePrints over the past year. Other digital versions may also be available to download e.g. from the publisher's website.

View more statistics

Atom RSS 1.0 RSS 2.0

Contact ePrints Soton: eprints@soton.ac.uk

ePrints Soton supports OAI 2.0 with a base URL of http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/cgi/oai2

This repository has been built using EPrints software, developed at the University of Southampton, but available to everyone to use.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we will assume that you are happy to receive cookies on the University of Southampton website.

×